March Break Abroad: The Pen and the Sword

Day Highlights

After our latest night of structured free time, the group was ready for a slower morning to catch up on sleep. Madrid has been great to us so far, and the bustling streets as we head into Holy Week has brought in so many visitors and relatives of Madrid natives. The streets are alive, and we’re able to get a great view into what life is like here in Madrid.

We sauntered into the lobby to meet our city guide, Inma, who took us through a tour of central Madrid, and included us in conversations about art, culture, and food. It was great to do this in the morning, because by the afternoon the population in the streets had easily tripled, and the sun was beating down on us quite heavily! It has certainly been a shock to go from the Canadian winter to a warmer-than-usual Spain.

Day 8

Our hotel is located in a great area nearby the Prado Museum (more on that tomorrow) which we got to see as we made our way towards the Literary Neighbourhood of Madrid. Here, famous playwrights and authors called Madrid home, including Lope de Vega, Miguel de Cervantes, and Benito Perez Galdos.

As we walked through the neighbourhood, we saw how many of the streets were named after these literary giants, their memorializations, and the apartments that they once called home. We even got to visit the home of Lope de Vega, where he also hosted early productions of his plays in his garden as a sneak peak into his work. If the crowd laughed or were satisfied, he knew he’d written a good piece. If not, back to the drawing board! We also learned about the rivalry between Vega and Cervantes, including Cervantes’ rambunctious and careless ways compared to Vega’s carefully constructed existence.

Just outside of the Literary Neighbourhood, we also got to experience the first large-scale living wall in Europe, located in the crux of three museums (a rarety for a city like Madrid). The wall, designed by a French architect, was a beautiful sight to see. Inma mentioned that the wall comes alive in the summer, which is expected but also surprising considering how green it already is.

As we walked through the city, we were all enamoured by the history of the shops and restaurants, some dating back more than 200 years. To see such history being preserved in the city is incredible, especially after learning about the notable people who would have lived here.

We continued on through the stretch of city centre that leads from the Prado Museum all the way to the Palacio Real de Madrid.

The first major plaza that we encountered was the Plaza de Santa Ana. What once stood as a convent is now an open air space. The convent had been torn down to create more flow throughout the city. The nuns were dispersed to other parts of Madrid, and now people can enjoy the plaza and historical buildings that surround it.

Next stop was the Plaza del Sol. This is one of the largest and busiest plazas in Madrid, surrounded by famous restaurants and artisanal shops, including Casa de Diego where there are beautiful handmade fans, something very special and particular to Spain. This plaza also marks Kilometre Zero, which is the midpoint of all of Spain, and we learned about how the advanced postal service of Spain used this as a way to connect all roads leading out of Madrid.

Two more significant spots marked our tour and we were off to Plaza Mayor. Once you walk through one of the plazas arches, you are surrounded by buildings and a large open space where hundreds of people gather. Good luck walking through this plaza on a busy afternoon! We learned about the control of breads and meat in this area which was meant to provide the people of Madrid with the basic necessities of life.

Our last stop was the Palacio Real de Madrid. The sweeping palace was beautiful to see. Perched on the edge of a hill, it gives a beautiful sight into the valley below, but also stands as an impressive structure to see as you walk along one of the major boulevards of Madrid.

Students had structured free time tonight, because tomorrow we get ready to head back to Canada!